Friday, 8 February 2013

Friday Recommends

When faced with the terrifying
prospect of being the sixth wife of King Henry VIII, Katherine Parr was
justified in being apprehensive; after all, Henry's previous marriages hadn't
exactly fared well. However, she quickly realises that refusing a King's
marriage proposal is tantamount to treason, and as she turns her back on a
passionate involvement with the charismatic Thomas Seymour, she resigns herself
to becoming the helpmate of an irascible and awkward old man. With great skill,
Elizabeth Fremantle has provided a
vivid portrait of the latter years of Henry’s reign and a real sense of history
pervades the story as it charts the challenging years of Katherine’s marriage
to an ageing and increasingly volatile Henry. Katherine Parr has always been
overshadowed by the sexier and altogether more robust catalogue of Henry’s ex
wives, and yet in Queen's Gambit, it
is easy to see just how this intelligent and thoughtful queen managed to hold
together all the pieces of Henry’s fragmented life. Katherine’s determination
to involve Henry’s lost and lonely children in some semblance of family life is
commendable; however, it is her religious fervour which will prove to be her
Achilles heel.

The story abounds with Tudor
skulduggery, and takes us effortlessly from the domestic arrangements of a royal
court on the move, to the intrigue of political and religious obsession. The
ever present threat of danger is never too far away and a real sense of
foreboding pervades as Katherine attempts to manage Henry whose capricious
nature often reveals a terrifying split personality. The historical figures
that flit into and out of court life are extremely well managed and the
inclusion of an extensive character list at the end of the book helps to put
them all into context

4 comments:

I loved this one as well. It's a fascinating time in our history and I was really impressed with the quality of the historical research undertaken and included within the story.You have written a lovely reveiw - if I had not already read this book I would certainly have wanted to read it based entirely upon your review.